About Us

Who we are

About Us
Agora at NRW Forum // internationale tanzmesse nrw 2022 (c) Dirk Rose
About Us
NRW Forum // internationale tanzmesse nrw 2022 (c) Dirk Rose
About Us
Opening internationale tanzmesse nrw 2022 (c) Dirk Rose

Highlighting Artistic Ideas & Values

internationale tanzmesse nrw is organised by nrw landesbuero tanz and is the largest professional meeting for contemporary dance. As a forum for exchange, knowledge transfer and networking, the Tanzmesse is an important meeting place for international dance creators. Every two years at the end of August, up to 1,500 international exhibitors and visitors come together in Düsseldorf to present a broad spectrum of aesthetic expression and artistic practices.

From expo to marketplace of ideas

Founded in 1994 as Tanzmesse NRW, the international tanzmesse nrw concentrated primarily on the marketing and distribution of dance productions in its founding years. In the years that followed, it developed into the most important international meeting place for contemporary dance. Today, the focus is on networking between dance professionals and the exchange of knowledge.

The three sections Agora, Talk & Connect and the Performance Programme make up international tanzmesse nrw.

Next edition: 28 - 31 August 2024

The Meeting: Agora, Talk & Connect and Performance Programme

The Agora exhibition space serves as the central hub of the internationale tanzmesse nrw. Companies, artists, institutions, and organisations will present themselves here. The Agora functions as a meeting place for dance professionals and is the place where guest performances are arranged, cooperation are initiated, and new projects emerge. In the openly designed Areas and Networking Islands, exhibitors can present their work and make new contacts. The Agora creates diverse encounters at eye level.

The Talk & Connect discourse programme offers space for knowledge transfer and discussion between dance professionals. Here, current social issues are explored, and dialogue is initiated about the values of the global dance community. In addition to classic formats such as keynotes and panels, new discussion formats will be tried out in which the participants meet as experts in their field.

In the Performance Programme of internationale tanzmesse nrw, artists will present selected works on stage, outdoors and digitally to international visitors and a dance-loving public. This also includes intergenerational works aimed at a cross-generational (professional) audience. In Open Studios and Insights, artists and dance professionals will give an insight into their artistic productions, working methods, plans and project ideas.

Jury

The selection of the performance programme as well as the Open Studios and Insights will be made by the four associate curators Natacha Melo (Montevideo/Uruguay), Julia Asperska (Poznan/Poland), Dan Daw (London/UK) and Quito Tembe (Maputo/Mozambique) together with the Co-Directors of the internationale tanzmesse nrw.

nrw landesbuero tanz

internationale tanzmesse nrw is a project of nrw landesbuero tanz under the management of Heike Lehmke. The nrw landesbuero tanz is an information centre, a networking point and a contact for the professional dance scene in North Rhine-Westphalia. It initiates projects, cooperation and discourses in the field of professional contemporary dance and supports the work of dance professionals in NRW by offering formats for networking and qualification and by supporting the dance scene with peer mentoring. With its projects, it gives dance public visibility and opens up diversity-related approaches to dance. Among other things, it organises and supports DYNAMO - Junge Tanzplattform NRW (annual), the festival tanz nrw (biennial) and internationale tanzmesse nrw (biennial).

North Rhine-Westphalia – Home of Dance

The internationale tanzmesse nrw takes place in Düsseldorf, the capital of the region of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), and in surrounding cities. NRW is Germany's most populous region, and its diverse dance scene is built on a long tradition. The nationally unique structure for contemporary dance is characterised by international networking. Lighthouse institutions are the future Pina Bausch Centre in Wuppertal, PACT Zollverein and Folkwang University in Essen, the German Dance Archive Cologne, the Centre for Contemporary Dance (ZZT) and the nrw landesbuero tanz in Cologne as well as the tanzhaus nrw and the internationale tanzmesse nrw in Düsseldorf. In addition to the ten companies of the municipal theatres, NRW has a strong independent dance scene as well as exemplary projects in the field of dance education and young dance.

History

Founded under the name "Tanzmesse NRW", the now renowned meeting first took place in Essen in 1994 under the direction of initiator Anne Neumann-Schultheis. The Tanzmesse was initiated by the Society for Contemporary Dance (GZT NRW) as a "showcase for dance in NRW" and quickly developed into an international networking event for dance. After three editions at the Zeche Zollverein (1994, 1997, 2000), the internationale tanzmesse nrw was held for the first time in 2002 and from this edition onwards biennially in Düsseldorf. With the move to Düsseldorf, Kajo Nelles took over the management of the Tanzmesse. Together with the Tanzmesse's long-time companion and pioneer of the event's international appeal, Carolelinda Dickey, he has ensured the event's rapid growth and prominence. Under his leadership and with his team of advisors and curators, Roman Arndt, Carolelinda Dickey and Christian Watty, sustainable networks with dance practitioners in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America were created. The 2014 and 2016 editions under the direction of Felix Wittek focused more on the idea of exchange and networking as well as the expansion of international cooperation among the participants. Like his successor Dieter Jaenicke (2018 & 2020 editions), he also focused on the inclusion of further dance creators from Australia, South America, and Africa. In 2020, due to the Corona pandemic, the internationale tanzmesse nrw took place as a one-day online event. The 2022 edition has been the first edition of the co-directors team Isa Köhler and Katharina Kucher.

Audioflyer

Here you can listen to our audio flyer about internationale tanzmesse nrw

About Tanzmesse – in International Sign Language

Tanzmesse Programme Trailer